February 3, 2012, Moscow – The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) issued today its Type Certificate A-176 for the Sukhoi Superjet 100 (model RRJ-95B). This certificate recognizes that the SSJ100 aircraft demonstrated compliance with the EASA airworthiness and environmental requirements. The recognition allows the European airlines, as well as those airlines operating in countries which use EASA regulations as a reference standard, to accept and operate the SSJ100 (RRJ-95B) aircraft. This result represents a key milestone in support of the brand credibility of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 which is the first ever Russian passenger “Large Airplane” to achieve the EASA CS-25 Certification. The EASA Type Certificate will be officially handed over to Sukhoi Civil Aircraft on February 24, 2012 at IAC Headquarters in Moscow.

The EASA certificate, which is a validation of the certificate issued by the Interstate Aviation Committee Aviation Register (IAC AR), is the result of the vast certification campaign performed by EASA, IAC AR and SCAC in association with Certification centers, Alenia Aermacchi (former Alenia Aeronautica) and key aircraft systems suppliers.

The European validation started after IAC AR certification application in 2004 and went through the four different phases, in parallel with the Russia Certification process: Familiarization, Agreement of Certification Programs, Compliance Determination and Final Project Report. The European Authority first familiarized with the aircraft, then deeply examined the aircraft technical characteristics and, in the last period, got proof of its performances and safety. The overall process allowed to assess the compliance with the strict European Airworthiness Code, resulting in the issue of the Type Certificate.

Thanks to the experience and dedication of the fully integrated multicultural SSJ100 Team, the EASA Certificate has been granted only one year after the achievement of the IAC AR Type Certificate.

The European validation program included several dedicated flight and ground tests. In particular the EASA pilots went through many sessions on the “electronics bird” (SCAC integrated simulator and RIG for the SSJ100) and participated in 45 certification flights (total duration about 70 flight hours) in order to prove the safety and in-flight performance of the SSJ100 aircraft in any situation. The ground tests covered, among others, the ultimate pressure load of the fuselage, the bird strike of the front upper cockpit panel, the broken-tire strike of the lower hatch cover of the wing fuel tank and the fire-resistance of the composite flap. In the frame of ten working groups (“Panels”) 84 Certification Review Items and 60 Certification Action Items were analyzed, substantiated and agreed while more than 500 actions and questions received from the Authorities were timely and satisfactory closed.

“The job we have done together is really great. We sincerely thank our colleagues from the EASA and IAC AR for their big support. The European certification is a key milestone in getting worldwide recognition of our aircraft which will open up new perspectives for the Sukhoi Superjet 100 in the international markets,” – said Vladimir Prisyazhnyuk, President of Sukhoi Civil Aircraft.

This great moment gains even more meaning, considering the strong international nature of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 project that comes from a new Russian growing reality, along with the Alenia Aermacchi strategic partnership, the reliable Customer Services provided by SuperJet International and Snecma capability as one of the key figures for the Powerjet SaM146 engine.

The list of the international and Russian suppliers to be mentioned would be endless, all the involved ones provided SCAC with really advanced products. Nevertheless it should be specially noted a great contribution of the main suppliers Thales, Liebherr, Messier-Bugatti-Dowty, Hamilton-Sundstrand and B/E Aerospace that enriched our product with their superb technology.

Surely, this wide integration of parts, processes and cultures created challenges, but has also been the trademark of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 since the beginning of the program and it is now a reason to be proud of, allowing SCAC and SJI to deliver their worldwide customers an extremely advanced and performing aircraft.

Source: Sukhoi
Photo: Marcel van Leeuwen, Z.A.P.P.